Lubricating oil improves the efficiency and durability of such systems as internal combustion engines, compressors, pumps and gear boxes. The presence of contaminants in the oil, however, significantly affects the performance of the oil. Such contaminants include soot, dissolved gases, dissolved liquids, emulsified liquids, and particles resulting from system wear.
Many methods and systems have been developed to detect contaminants in oil. One prior system, for example, includes a capacitive oil deterioration sensor that is used to determine the dielectric constant of engine oil based on the capacitive reactance of the oil. The theory behind this sensor is that the dielectric constant of the oil is related to the concentration of contaminants in the oil. Assuming the oil is a perfect insulator, the capacitive reactance X.sub.c of the oil can be expressed as:
X.sub.c =1/(2.pi.fC), where f is the frequency of a potential applied across the sensor, and C is the capacitance of the oil.
While the capacitive reactance can be measured with little error in non-polar oil, measurement error increases with increasing conductivity of the oil due to solution current flowing through the oil.
Generally, newly refined base oil stock is a non-polar solution. When it is formulated for lubricating oil, various additives are added to improve performance and extend the useful life of the oil. Many of these additives, however, are polar and increase the conductivity of the oil. Conductivity of the oil further increases with increasing temperature. Even as "new" oil reaches operating temperatures, minor solution current can be detected. Solution current also increases as contaminants increase in the oil during use.
Furthermore, prior art methods and systems typically utilize an unbalanced alternating current (AC) or static direct current (DC) potential that causes migration of polar contaminants toward oppositely charged sensor electrodes. Eventually, this contaminant migration results in build up of contaminants on the electrodes, which contributes to erroneous capacitive reactance measurements of the oil. A prior approach to reduce contaminant buildup has been to coat one or both of the electrodes with a non-stick surface such as TEFLON.RTM.. This approach, however, does not reduce polar contaminant migration toward the electrodes.